User reviews

Mindless, 'wacky' nonsense involving sorry group of thieves in Italy who hope to rob Old World mobster Vittorio De Sica out of 50 grand...unfortunately, he's broke. Plan B has the team plus De Sica and criminal mastermind Edward G. Robinson joining forces to steal five million in platinum ingots from a train. Inane, overlong caper with mostly obnoxious characters (particularly Robert Wagner's, who keeps barking insults like a tough Sammy Davis, Jr.: "I've had it, baby, can you dig it?"). Raquel Welch is bouncy as the one girl in the bunch, and anyone watching will end up just watching her. Ken Annakin directed, without flair, style or humor. *1/2 from ****

Not a truly funny movie, but it is amusing. Watching Robert Wagner acting tough is very amusing. Of course there is Raquel in all her splendor. Watching her go-go with Edward G. Robinson (!) is worth the price of admission alone. The supporting characters do the best they can with the cartoon characters they are given to enact. And you get to watch Godfrey Cambridge play the violin!

A nice trip to Italy and a good paycheck is what probably got Robert Wagner, Raquel Welch and Edward G. Robinson over from America to make The Biggest Bundle Of Them All. Not to mention Godfrey Cambridgr who has a few funny moments in this routine caper film.

All, but Robert Wagner have no criminal activity to their credit. Wagner has recruited Welch, Cambridge, Davy Kaye and Francesco Mule to kidnap deported old Mafia don Vittorio DeSica to hold for ransom. Problem is that he's so long out of the criminal business no one figures DeSica is worth paying for.

DeSica feeling rejected and unwanted decides to get back in action and this mob of misfits is whom he recruits. He also gets Edward G. Robinson who is a Sam Jaffe like caper planner. Robinson and DeSica decide to rob a train carrying platinum bars.

Somehow this crew with a lot of problems makes it come off. Pretty routine. But the ending with a variation is borrowed from Ocean's 11.

Raquel Welch does look great in a bikini.

I agree with moonspinner55's review.

It's painful to watch Wagner play a simple pain-in-the-ass, or Cambridge play a bumbler with no good scenes.

Welch is very pretty, but like everyone else here, her one dimensional character adds nothing.

Nobody here has an interesting character, nor is there any humor evident in the first 50 minutes (after which I stopped).

I enjoy wacky caper comedies, but though this movie tries to be one, it never comes close.

If you spend two hours on this, you're spending more time on it than the writers did.

Robert Wagner (with girlfriend Raquel Welch in tow), Godfrey Cambridge, Davy Kaye, and Francesco Mulè kidnap retired gangster Vittorio di Sica and try to ransom him. He's broke. When he can't raise the ransom money, he takes them into partnership to steal $5,000,000 in platinum with a plan by mastermind Edward G. Robinson.

It's one of those sprawling 1960s comedies, this one directed by Ken Annakin, populated by serious actors. Unfortunately, it's not in the least funny. Di Sica shows no sparkle, Wagner is in over his depth, and Miss Welch, who would show great comedy chops in THE THREE MUSKETEERS, is present for eye candy, and she certainly performs in a bikini. The big heist is well done, but that makes this no less a slog.

This sort of movie could work; IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD was carried on the backs of its all-star comic performers, and WHO'S MINDING THE MINT likewise. This one, however, brought no smile to my face.

"The Biggest Bundle of Them All" is a caper film that would have worked much better had the story either been funnier or a serious story. As it is, this hybrid story left me very cold.

When the story begins, a gang of misfits kidnaps a famous mobster (Vittorio De Sica). But they soon learn the man has little money and instead of just releasing him, the kidnap victim gets them to agree to make him the boss and pull a really big heist...$5,000,000! But unfortunately, the gang turn out to be complete idiots...too much so.

The story seemed incomplete. I have no idea why Raquel Welch was there other than to be nice eye candy. I have no idea why several of the gang members were afraid of guns and violence. And, I have no idea why De Sica and Edward G. Robinson would agree to be in a film with such a weak script. Overall, dull and difficult to believe.

I've got as much testosterone as the next bloke, and Raquel Welch at her finest is certainly worth a look; but the fact is that a cardboard cut-out could act better, and an hour and half of Ms. W showing off her credentials does not a movie make.

Considering the cast, it's surprising that it's as bad as it is. I've never been a big fan of Wagner, and his tough guy Harry is about as convincing as a 9-dollar bill. Godfrey Cambridge and Vittorio de Sica, both of whom I usually enjoy, seem to be sleeping through their lines; and as for Edward G...well, I can only assume he was there for the paycheck.

This film is a mess: from non-existent plot, through stop-start action and unfunny script to puerile slapstick and annoying 60's 'caper' music. If it weren't for Miss Welch, I'd have given it a 0.

That said, she is a treat to the eyes - even better than her delicious cameo in 'Bedazzled' - and for that reason alone I gave it a 3.

This movie is a fun and good enough little movie, that has a weak plot and some poor acting but amuses nevertheless.

This is a pretty weak little comedy that never manages to become really funny. The characters were fun in their potential but somehow it doesn't work out on screen. The movie has perhaps too many characters on which it focuses far too little. It makes the characters as well as the story feel pretty empty and distant. Still thank goodness there is Raquel Welch, who still puts some life and spirit into the movie. Even though her character really isn't that significant it still spices up things. And watching her dance in a bikini is also of course never a bad thing.

The story is too simple and predictable from start till finish, although the premise itself is certainly amusing. Having a bunch of amateur criminals planning a major heist sounds like pretty good comical material but yet the movie in the end does very little with its fine potential and premise. The movie falls flat as a fun comedy but thanks to its characters, which are obviously not to take very serious and a couple of good sequences, the movie still remains an amusing one that might not entertaining constantly but also certainly does not bore.

The acting is really below par, even though the movie has some 'big' names in it. Robert Wagner is terrible as the tough talking guy and wannabe leader of the group. The movie also feature Edward G. Robinson, who was quite a big name in the business in the '40's. He's good enough in his role but his role is too restrained and limited to make a big impression.

Sort of only worth watching when you really have nothing else to do- or watch.

6/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

I watched "The Biggest Bundle of Them All" today as the second part of my Raquel Welch doubleheader on TCM today. And though I had modest expectations I was still somewhat disappointed with this film. It seems like it should be good but it just isn't. The pace is too sluggish until the very end, the humor too gentle, the action too sparse, and the tone too uneven. This is one of those films stuck in no man's land between a spoof and a serious film. The characters are all fairly dull and uninteresting as is the plot. The positives are the nice cinematography and location shooting in Europe, but this film really bogs down at times, and I wanted to like it. So, one of the lesser Raquel films though not her fault really; I always like to see her but this one is kind of dull to be honest. I give it a 5/10 but that may be generous.

I don't go for that many "heist" comedies, and I might not care for this one if it weren't for the actors, when it was made, and when I FIRST SAW it (just a few years later). It's almost too similar to "The Happening" (even though it's obviously a much less serious comedy than that one) - Mafia figure takes over his own kidnapping, or rather, turns it in a different direction altogether. Of course, Raquel Welch didn't play the kind of sharp character Faye Dunaway did in The Happening, but that doesn't make it a sexist film either - she was practically playing a stock character, almost HER version of a "moll"! But, I'm completely biased - it's among the first films I ever saw with her, and at the time I saw it, you couldn't turn around without seeing a poster of her (luckily). I think Robert Wagner was really just right as the neither thoroughly likable nor dis-likable leader of the group, as were Edward G. Robinson (naturally) and Vittoria De Sica. And Godfrey Cambridge, an actor who always managed to be funny.

I caught this flick on the trail end of a tape I had used to capture a movie I truly wanted to wanted to see again. When I saw Raquel Welch's name in the opening credits, I decided to watch it. It was actually mildly entertaining, and took me back "in the wayback machine" to the farcical movies that Hollywood churned out during the sixties, much in the same genre as the current Austin Powers stuff. Oh the acting was not superb, nor was the plot, but it was worth watching. There was some delightful scenery, although Ms. Welch provided the most pleasant of such. Tape it if you get the chance and watch it when you have absolutely nothing else to do. It is not a snoozer, but it won't have you rolling in the aisles wanting more, either.

And also the third heist movie involving Edward G Robinson as the mastermind; remember Henry Hathaway's THE SEVEN THIEVES and Giuliano Montaldo's THE GRAND SLAM. But the latest was not really a comdey, nor the Hank Hathaway's film either. This one is more in the line of TOPKAPI, ITALIAN JOB, GAMBIT, TREASURE OF SAN GENNARO, SEVEN GOLDEN MEN.... This very one is definitely the most comedy oriented of them all. It is agreeable, fun, but not my favourite though. Only the last part is worth watching, with the heist sequence. But if you a nostalgic of this sixties period, this feature is for you. Not not the greatest heist - caper - film of them all.

So Raquel Welch was the big star here, and apparently kept everyone else waiting while she did her make-up. Edward Robinson and Robert Wagner were also pretty big stars by then, and told her they were sick of waiting for her. Anyway... Vittorio De Sica is Cesare, mafia king, who gets held up by young amateur Harry (Robert Wagner). But Cesare is broke, and his family and friends just don't care. When Cesare hears that his family won't help, he is insulted, and tells Harry that he will personally help him get 5 million dollars. By stealing platinum on a train. And the caper is ON! Directed by Ken Annakin.. he had directed part of "Longest Day" and "Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines." was nominated for best oscar for "Men in their Flying Machines"! VERY lightweight drama... silly but fun. A heist in italy. Was probably a lot of fun for the cast to make... when they weren't waiting for Raquel W. Sadly, Benny (Godfrey Cambridge ) died of a heart attack at 43.

While they do not shine for originality, this movie turns out to be decent and manages to get some laughs.

As the title suggests, the whole robbery is doomed to failure but they will always go forward with enthusiasm and at least avoid jail.

Harry Price (Robert Wagner) with girlfriend Juliana (Raquel Welch) and three amateurs kidnap retired mob boss Cesare Celli (Vittorio De Sica). Celli doesn't have any money and he is surprised that nobody is willing to lend him the money to pay the ransom. With no ransom money, Harry releases the captive in frustration. Celli has a better idea and recruits the crew to do a $5 million heist with the help of Professor Samuels (Edward G. Robinson).

I like this as a caper movie. The caper is rather unbelievable and any thinking man would abandon it before it starts. The double-cross is good but the moral outrage is unbelievable. Celli hasn't shown enough kindness to the group for the return of their loyalty especially with the time crunch. The movie tries for screwball comedy but only succeeds intermittently. The veterans are great. Welch's contribution is mostly visual. Wagner is fine. This is sorta fine.

It's not as wacky as it tries to be, and it really drags at parts in the first hour. Ut once they actually go into the heat sequence, it becomes much more enjoyable as a plot.

The humor is sometimes forced, sometimes campy and sometimes works. I got a kick out of seeing Edward G Robinson use an easel and picture boards as he briefed the group on the heist he wanted to pull, anyone who has sat through an unnecessary power point presentation at work should enjoy that little bit of satire. Robert Wagner's character is a real heal, something Wagner didn't play very often. There are some funny scenes relating to rivalries among various Italian police forces, but American audiences probably didn't get the jokes on that score.

It took much longer than usual to set up the caper than is usually the case in a heist flick, and that's where it feels like it drags on and on, but once they do actually start pulling the job, I enjoyed the action and liked the plan they had put together. The ending is so very predictable and everybody should see it coming long before it happens.

Best aspects of the film are the fine Italian landscape, the scenery Raquel Welch contributes and Godfrey Cambridge's comedic segments.